Government shutdown threatens Head Start

Saturday

Oct 5, 2013 at 2:00 PM

Northeast Missouri Community Action Agency can't access funds to feed children in program.

Jason Hunsicker @JHunsicker_KDE @jhunsicker_kde

The Northeast Missouri Community Action Agency and its related programs, including Head Start, are in a perilous predicament thanks to the federal government shutdown and are already seeking help from outside organizations in order to continue feeding children in need.

But even with that help, the Agency cannot carry on indefinitely without restoration of federal funding.

Penny Miles, executive director of the Northeast Missouri Community Action Agency, said Friday that several federal programs that fund local services were set to start Oct. 1 - the same date that Congress allowed the U.S. government to shut down.

That government shutdown means no federal funds are flowing to the Agency.

An immediate casualty has been food for Head Start children. Funded through a Children and Adult Center Food Program grant, the money helps cover the $18,000 per month needed to prepare food and feed more than 300 children in the Agency's Head Start facilities.

Miles said the Agency can at tempt to pull some funds from other Head Start programs to purchase food, but those monies are already earmarked for specific parts of the program and moving it creates more holes.

"It just snowballs," Miles said. "If we do that, we'll run out of Head Start funds."

Miles called Susan Dublin with The Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri earlier this week, and The Food Bank will respond by sending a truck loaded with baby food, formula and canned fruits and vegetables on Monday.

It's a massive help, but Miles is still uncertain about how far it will go.

"This is unfamiliar territory for me," Miles said.

It's been a difficult week for Miles and other Agency employees as they attempt to navigate the shutdown, keep programs running and keep the doors open. No amount of budget maneuvering can keep things going indefinitely, as even spending all unrestricted reserves cover operating costs for just "a few months" at best, Miles said.

"I'm looking at it daily on how far we can go," she said. "The board and the management team, we'll have to make some decisions."

Miles expressed frustration with the state's federally elected officials and urged the community to respond, specifically noting Rep. Sam Graves, the area's elected representative in the U.S. House, and Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, who currently represents the third district after serving several terms as northeast Missouri's voice in Congress.

"I would like to see them bombard Luetkemeyer and Graves," Miles said.

"I think they just don't get it. I think they only see Washington, and they're pretty sheltered when they come back. They don't ever see any of the bad stuff, I don't think."

In addition to Head Start children, those who qualify for free and reduced lunches and attend one of the 41 Daycare Homes the Agency partners with are also at risk. In that program, Daycare Homes provide nutritious meals to children and need to meet several additional requirements. If they do, each month the Agency reimburses their food costs through a federal program.

While checks have been mailed to cover September expenses, there are no funds for October and Miles said the Agency can't even tell the Homes if backpay will be available when the shutdown is lifted.

"Some of these Daycare Homes could go under," Miles said, "and kids may not get the kind of nutrition they need to get."

For other services such as the Low Income Heating Energy Assistance Program, which helps provide emergency utility funding, the extended outlook is unclear. It's a difficult position for those who need access to services, as well as for those who provide them.

"Folks are concerned about their own jobs as well as their families," Miles said.

The federal government shutdown already placed about 800,000 government workers on furlough, with many others working without pay until Congress passes either a new federal budget or a short-term resolution to restore funding at previous budget levels.

House Republicans have blocked any budget measure that doesn't have provisions to defund or delay the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. The health care law went into effect Oct. 1 and its funding is not connected to the shutdown.

President Barack Obama and Democrats in the House and Senate have stated they will not allow the ACA to be part of any budget negotiations.